Annunciator for street-cars.



' PATENTED JUNVEQS, 1903. w. H. HERRIGIL' ANNUNGIATOR FOR STREET GARS.

APPLIOATION IILEDMAY 12. 1902.

N0. 731,9QOQ

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INVENTOR.

A TTORNEY.

THE "cams PEYERS co. PHOTOLITHDW WASHINGTON, u. r..

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tors or annunciators which indicate to the pas- PATENT Patented June 23, 1903.

OFFICE.

WILLIAM H. HERRICK, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

ANNUNCIATOR FOR STREET-CARS.

.SPEGIFIGATIGN forming part of Letters Patent No. 731,900, dated June 23, 1903.

Application filed May 12, 19021 Serial No. 106,953. (No model.) i

To all whom) it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. HERRIOK,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and v State of Ohio, have invented certain new and {useful Improvements in Annunciators for fication, reference being Street-Cars, of which the following is aspecihad therein to the accompanying drawings.

My invent on relates to street-car indicasengers the next stop which will be made by the car. It is especiallywell adapted for application to electric cars, and its preferred form will be described in this connection.

In general terms the invention may be said to comprise a box adapted to be placed in the ed upon it.

car in full view of the passengers, which box is provided with a. movable web having the names of the successive streets or stops print- A current flowing in a branch conductor which passes through this box maintains the web in afixedposition, and

this circuit being automatically broken at certain points of the route other mechanism is set in operation which automatically advances the web, when the circuit is closed again.

jMore specifically, the invention consists in a certain combination and construction of.

1 parts to be more fully described hereinafter and definitely set forth in the claims.

box in cross-section, the

lathe drawings, which fully illustrate my invention, Figure 1 represents a front elevation of the annunciator-box, a portion being broken away, as indicated, to disclose the operating mechanism. Fig. 2 represents the operating mechanism, however, being shown generally in ele- 4 of the car and a short wire adapted to the purposes of this invenvation. Fig. 3 represents the trolley-wheel portion of the trolleytion. Fig. 4 representsdiagrammaticallyand sents the annunciatorcase, which on a very small scale the wiring from the trolley through the earl Referring to the parts by letter, A repreconsists substantially of a box having a front a, provided with an opening a. Within this box are mounted rollers B B, between which 1 passes a web 0. Upon thisweb are printed termittent motion.

' in which it is shown in Fig. 2.

in succession the names of the streets at which the car may stop. Mechanism is provided for automatically advancing the web, so as to bring the names of the streets in succession before the opening a as the carprogresses along its run. The rollers B B are carried upon horizontal shafts D E, mounted in suitable bearings (1'6 These shafts carry rigidly the gears d 6, respectively, and a pinion F upon a stud f, carried in the bearingf, meshes with both of these gears, as indicated. From this arrangement any rotation of the lower roller will be transmitted to the upper one. In addition to the gear e, carried by the lower shaft, there is also a pinion e carried rigidly by it, which may mesh with either of the gears G G, which are mounted in a forked plate H, and smaller pinions g g" are rigid, respectively, with these gears. They are carried upon studs 9 and the smaller pinions are both driven by a larger gear K, which is mounted upon the same pivot 70 with the aforesaid plate H. From this arrangement if the parts were in the relation in whichthey are shown in Fig. 2 any rotation of the large gear K would operate to rotate the pinion g and communicate the motion to the shaft E, and an idler g affords means for driving the gear G in the opposite direction to that of the gear G. Mechanism is provided for giving the gear K the necessary in- To this end a leverL is provided, which is pivoted at the point 2, so that it lies substantially horizontally below the mechanism described. An electromagnet M lying just below it receives a movable core Z, which is secured by a pin to the aforesaid lever. L. Near its extremity this lever L is provided with a pawl Z the tip of which engages with the ratchet-teeth of the ratchet-wheel O, and this ratchet is rigid with the aforesaid gear K. The pawl is pressed toward the ratchet-wheel by asmall spring 0, as indicated. A spring P, secured to the side of the boX,teuds to raise the lever U L. From this construction it will appear that if the current flows continuously through the coils of theelectromagnet M the lever L will be maintained in the depressed position the current were broken only for an instant,

If, however,

the spring P would operate to elevate the lever, and when the circuit is closed again the lever is drawn down again. The pawl operates to rotate the ratchet. While there is of coursea comparatively small movement of this lever, the arrangement of the gearing which has been described multiplies this movement until it is sufficient to advance the web, so that the next name or street appears before the opening in the box. In order to adjust the normal position of the lever L, the same is provided with a downwardly-projecting ear Z which cooperates with a horizontal set-screw l, mounted in the box. Suitable binding-posts R R are provided, as indicated. In Fig. 3 is shown the means for automatically breaking this electric circuit through the magnet. In this figure, S represents the trolley-wire. T represents the trolley-wheel, and U represents the circuit-breaker, which consists of an insulating strip or sleeve preferably made of jute fiber or other similar insulating material, and its presence evidently operates to break the contact foran instant between the trolley wheel and wire.

In practice the circuit-breaker U will be attached to the trolley-wire at points just preceding the stopping-points and the motorman will turn off his controller fora short period, during which the trolley passes the contact-breaker. In most cases he will do this at any event, for the reason that he is just arriving at a regular stop. As the circuit leading from the trolley is then turned off when the trolley passes the circuit-breaker U, no possible evil effects can be produced from breaking and reclosing the circuit suddenly. From this arrangement it will follow that just as the car is arriving at stop No. I stop No. 2 will be visible in the annunciator-box. As stop 3 is reached stop 4 will appear in the box, and so on.

In Fig. 4 branches V V are shown, one of which passes through the annunciator-box A, while the other goes to the controller W, both thence passing to the ground, as indicated. In other Words, the annunciator-loox and controller are placed in parallel.

The pivot 70, to which reference has already been made, projects out from the box, where it is provided with a key 7t. By turning this key so as to move the plate H the gear G may be disengaged from the pinion c and the gear G may be brought into engagement with it. When this change has been made, a rotation of the ratchet-wheel in the same direction as before will evidently now operate to drive the rollers in the opposite direction. This key is operated in this manner at the end of every run, so that the names of the streets are then brought before the opening in a reversed order.

The mode of operation of the entire mechanism may be briefly summarized as follows: As the car proceeds along its route at predetermined points the trolley T passes over the circuit-breaker U,wherefore the current passing to the annunciator is broken for an instant. This current while it continues maintains the lever L in a depressed position and the partsin the relation in which they are shown in Fig. 2. When this current is broken in the manner described, the lever L is elevated by the spring P, the tip of the pawl Z moving upward along the periphery of the ratchet-wheel K. When the circuit is made again, the ratchet-wheel is of course rotated and its movement transmitted to the rollers and multiplied, so that the web is advanced to show the next stop. At the end of the route turning the key throws the gear G into mesh with the pinion e, wherefore the mechanism now moves the web in the opposite direction.

What I claim is- 1. In an annunciator, in combination, rollers, a web carried therebetween and having names of stops thereupon, gears carried by said rollers on the axes thereof, a pinion between said gears and meshing with both, a second gear carried by one of said rollers, a pivoted plate, oppositely-driven gears carried thereby, said plate being adapted to be rotated so that either of said last gears may engage said second gear, substantially as set forth.

2. In an annunciator, in combination, rollers, a web carried therebetween and having the names of successive streets printed thereupon, an electromagnet, means whereby said magnet is normally energized, automatic means for intermittently breaking the circuit through said magnet, a plate carrying separate gears, a pinion with which said gears may mesh wherefore they may advance said web in different directions, substantially as set forth.

3. In an annunciator, in combination, rollers having gears mounted at the extremities, a pinion lying between said gears, and meshing with both, a pivoted plate, separate gears carried thereby, a pinion rigid with one of said rollers and which may be engaged by either of said separate gears, an electromagnet, means whereby the same is normally onergized, automatic means for breaking the circuit through said magnet, and mechanism operated thereby and by the reclosing of said circuit for driving either of said separate gears, substantially as set forth 4. In an annunciator, in combination, rollers, a web carried therebetween, gears rigidly mounted upon the axes of said rollers, a pinion therebetween and meshing with both, one of said rollers having a second pinion, a pivotally-mounted plate, gears carried thereby either of which may engage with said second pinion, a lever, a spring constraining the same, a pawl carried thereby, a ratchet cooperating therewith and adapted to advance either of said separate gears, an electromagnet, the core whereof depends from said lever, means for normally maintaining a closed circuit through said magnet, and automatic means for breaking the same, substantially as set forth.

5. In an annunciator, in combination, rollers, a Web carried therebetween and having the names of streets, gears carried by said rollers, a pinion therebetween, meshing with both of said gears, an electromagnet, means whereby said electromagnet may actuate said rollers to advance said web, a pivoted plate, two gears carried thereby and adapted to advance said web in different directions, and a gear with which either of said last gears may mesh to advance said web, substantially as set forth. a

6. In combination with an annunciator, in-

sulating members carried by a trolley-wire, rollers carried within said annunciator, a web WILLIAM H. I-IERRIOK.

' Witnesses:

F. D. AMMEN, E. L. PARDEE.

signature o 

